Test Drive Review: I drove the Slate truck. Its toy-like looks hide a surprisingly serious pickup (Business Insider)

[EV Trek]

My 1st truck was a 2000 Chevrolet S-10, 2 doors, single cab.
The Slate will rekindle my fond memories of that truck

Mine was an 87 S-10 EL, no radio, no options, 4 speed manual, 92hp 4 cylinder didn’t even come with a rear bumper.

 

[hempev]

My most recent is a 2022, I have no subscriptions that actually operate any of the functions of the vehicle. Sure, it has Sirius XM that can be a subscription, but it is not necessary, and Sirius XM has been around as subscription service for nearly 20 years IIRC.

IMO, "right-to-repair" and subscription services are way overblown on this forum and on internet car forums in general.

I bought a '23 Bolt 2 months ago and took out the fuse to the On-Star service just to make sure there was no telemetry (and yes, the microphone for the cell still works).

 

[sodamo]

Very enjoyable article. Thanks for posting

 

[mikehell]

Yet, this vehicle is the most "personalizable" vehicle ever in the history of the automotive industry, even more than Porsche. [I present today's Slate email as evidence]

You obviously weren't around for the VW Thing. That thing was "personalizable" and was advertised as such. It flopped.

 

[kvermeer]

You obviously weren't around for the VW Thing. That thing was "personalizable" and was advertised as such. It flopped.

Counterpoint: The Thing is a vehicle that millions of people know by name, and it's now a treasured collectible people are still talking about more than 50 years later. Even today one is worth more than 10x its original price (1.5x its inflation-adjusted value).

I really hope Slate is as successfull as, say, Tesla or Rivian, making vehicles for decades instead of just a 2-year production run, but if they only flop as successfully as the Thing then they'll have done very well.

Also, I think it flopped due to not meeting even 70s safety regulations so VW was forced to cancel it, not entirely because it wasn't as unpopular as it needed to be.

 

[LordHyphen]

Great article! As someone who's newest car is from 2013, I basically avoided the whole pay to play thing and lived to survive it.

Can you believe it's almost August?

I've got a '15. Just before Carplay became standard in most cars. And while I love my Camry - especially the physical controls - it beeps over every little thing, and that's become an annoyance with modern vehicles. So I'm intrigued by this truck for the low-tech capabilities alone.

 

[007]

This guy is supposed to be 6'10".

 

[E90400K]

You obviously weren't around for the VW Thing. That thing was "personalizable" and was advertised as such. It flopped.

I was around 9 years old when it was introduced in the US. I wasn't of car buying age then and did not pay much attention to it as I did American cars. I was the kid who could name every car at night just by its headlight signature. 🤣

My older brothers shared a '72 bug.

 

[atx_ev]

The pitch is less "pay to unlock this software feature" and more "physically build the vehicle you want."

Sums it up nicely.

Im fine if slate wants to start selling software features via the telematics module. If they are excellent I wouldnt mind subscribing. But I dont want to pay for them if I dont want them.

I dont mind being tracked, but I do mind when the infotainment is annoying to use.

My wifes infotainment
1) cant be shut down completely so when you are sitting in the car at night it is fully lit up
2) requires a login when you turn the car in. You have to hit two onscreen buttons to go anonymous. If you dont go anonymous you cant access anything and the infotainment goes blank
3) android auto works great, the mercedes software is terrible

The one thing I really like is voice control over functions. I find it even safer than physical buttons and dials.

"Tune AM 590" or "call <wife>" "navigate to XXXX" I was even able to say "reroute me over local roads only" the other day.

My 2010 tundra is starting to have more and more repairs, water pump just died and so I may need a new car in the next year.

 

[malewizard]

The more reviews of this character can only help to elevate what some think of as just a hype for something different. A few years back a company was trying to make a three wheel vehicle. They had several test models and even took some orders. I never heard anymore about it. People like Jay Leno endorsing the truck early on,can only help the already four billion five hundred million in orders IF they are all produced and sold. (Based on 180k slots given out times the base of 25k)

 

[Freyar]

I dont mind being tracked, but I do mind when the infotainment is annoying to use.

I wouldn't mind if I can wholesale turn it off, which you can't in any currently available modern car. Let alone you can't be sure they just won't turn it back on (much like Microsoft does for bloatware features in Win11.)

It must be my choice in my car.

 

[E90400K]

I wouldn't mind if I can wholesale turn it off, which you can't in any currently available modern car. Let alone you can't be sure they just won't turn it back on (much like Microsoft does for bloatware features in Win11.)

It must be my choice in my car.

My Bronco's modem seems to stay off. It shows in a shadow icon on the infotainment screen. And it a bit of a PITA, but I can turn off the screen completely. I took the Android Auto app off my phone too. Almost like it's the 1970s.

 

[Supernintendo Chalmers]

The rolling backward on a hill, was it with or without brakes? 😅

I’m guessing he is referring to a delay in the vehicle’s auto-hold which keeps the vehicle stopped once stopped until the accelerator is pushed again.

 

[SparkYellow]

I’m guessing he is referring to a delay in the vehicle’s auto-hold which keeps the vehicle stopped once stopped until the accelerator is pushed again.

--> The most recently shared drive-test happened to answer my question. It sounds like a tap on the [brake] pedal activates the hill-hold. Regen alone doesn't hold on hills.

My only experience with EV was a Kia Nero for about 5 weeks. I suppose this is close to the hill-assist on vehicles with manual transmission, i.e., to hold the brakes for 1 or 2 seconds when we move the right foot from the brake to the accelerator, while letting out the clutch. Asking because I don't know how much regen braking holds on hills.

 

[sodamo]

Sounds like some of us are in for some retraining, but hey, we can do it.